Grinding apparatus

ABSTRACT

A driven drum having an octagonal shape is provided for grinding material placed therein. Aside portion of the drum is provided with openings therein and a closure plate slidable relative thereto normally closes the openings. The closure plate is provided with openings which may be aligned with the openings in the side portions by a cam arrangement to permit material within the drum to fall through the aligned openings upon rotation of the drum. The drum may be provided with exhaust means, heater means and means for facilitating grinding of the material within the drum.

United States Patent 1 11 3,73%,442 Harris 51 ay 1, 1973 54 GRINDING APPARATUS 514,097 2/1894 Sly ..24l/l76 [76] Inventor: Clarence P. Harris, 328 Fountain 210,471 12/1878 Senderling ..24l/85X Place, Burlington, NC.

Primary ExammerDonald G. Kelly 22 Filed: Nov. 29, 1971 Appl. N0.: 202,826

[52] US. Cl. ..241/60, 241/85, 241/91, 241/177 [5 1] Int. Cl. ..]B02c 17/02, B02c 17/10 [58] Field of Search ..241/60, 84, 84.1, 241/85, 86, 91, 171, 176, 177; 209/98, 259, 284

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 214,481 4/1879 Anderson ..241/85 X 2,837,289 6/1958 Heckett ..24l/171 X 2,895,610

7/1959 Copping ..209/98 AttorneyDavid Rabin [5 7] ABSTRACT A driven drum having an octagonal shape is provided for grinding material placed therein. Aside portion of the drum is provided with openings therein and a closure plate slidable relative thereto normally closes the openings. The closure plate is provided with openings which may be aligned with the openings in the side portions by a cam arrangement to permit material within the drum to fall through the aligned openings upon rotation of the drum. The drum may be provided with exhaust means, heater means and means for facilitating grinding of the material within the drum.

10 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PATENTEU MY 1 I973 SHEET 1 UF 2 INV'ENTOR CLARENCE P. HARRIS a Horne y PATENTED MY 1 I975 SHEET 2 []F 2 FIG.7

INVENTOR CLARENCE P. HARRIS GRINDING APPARATUS BRIEF SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to a grinding apparatus and more particularly to a tumbling drum arranged for grinding or breaking various materials suc as glass or feed into smaller particles.

Briefly, the apparatus comprises a rotary drum having a tapered octagonal shape for grinding material placed therein. The drum may have one or more side portions with openings therein, the openings on a particular side portion being of a common size. The openings are normally closed by a closure plate also having a series of openings therein which correspondin' size to the openings and its associated side portion. Each closure plate is urged into a closed position by a spring arrangement, but may be opened by a cam arrangement which aligns the openings in the side portion with the openings in the closure plate to permit material to fall through the openings onto a conveyor. A preselected closure plate may be actuated by the'cam arrangement upon each drum revolution. The drum maybe provided with an exhaust system for removing dust, dirt, etc. In addition, material within the drum may be heated to remove moisture therefrom. Also, a weighted member or cutter members may be provided in the drum to facilitate grinding of the material.

One of the primary objects of the invention is the provision of a new and improved apparatus for grinding materials to various preselected sizes.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a grinding apparatus having an exhaust system.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a grinding apparatus having openings and closure means for depositing materials, up to a preselected size, onto a conveyor.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent when considered in view of the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the grinding apparatus of the present invention illustrating the series of openings provided in the sides of the drum and with the opening closure means removed;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, front elevational view of the apparatus looking into the open end of the drum;

FIG. 3 is a bottom plan view of one side portion of the drum illustrating the door opening and closure means for the openings within the side of the drum;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3 with the closure means opening aligned with the openings in the side of the drum to permit material within the drum to fall through the openings;

FIG. 5 is a view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 4 illustrating the cam arrangement for opening and closing a particular closure plate on the drum;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, front elevational view of a drum illustrating a plurality of cam followers for opening the various closure plates and adapted to be actuated by the cam when positioned in a preselected location; and

FIG. 7 is a schematic, side elevational view, with parts removed, ofa modified embodiment of the drum.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 0 through belt and pulley arrangements 26 and 28 with the belt and pulley arrangement 28 driving the shaft 22 which is secured to the drum 24. While a direct drive has been shown, it is to be understood that the motor may drive the drum 24 through a variable speed means or other suitable drive arrangements. Positioned below the drum 24 in a recessed portion of the base frame 12 is a conveyor 30 for receiving material discharged from the drum.

The drum comprises a polygonal, tapered body having one end closed by a plate 32 while the other end is opened to receive materials therein. In the preferred embodiment, the body is octagonal and inclined at approximately a l530 angle with respect to the horizontal, as shown by FIG. 1. The side portions 34,35, 37 may be provided with a series of openings 36 therein to permit the discharge of material onto the conveyor 30.

While the size of openings 36 on a particular side portion 34 of the drum would be the same, the sizes of openings may vary from side portion to side portion. For example, all openings 36 on one side 34 may be one quarter inch in diameter while openings 36 on another side portion 35 may be one-half inch in diameter. In this manner material up to a particular predetermined size may be discharged from the drum through preselected openings 36 in one or more side portions. In the embodiment illustrated, openings 36 of differing sizes have been provided on three adjacent side portions 34, 35 and 37.

The openings 36 of each side portion 34 normally are closed by a closure plate 38 also having a series of openings 40. The size of openings 40 in a closure plate 38 would necessarily correspond in size to the openings 36 of the side portion which supports the plate 38. With the plate 38 in the closed position, as shown by FIG. 3, the openings 36 and 40 do not align and therefore material cannot be dishcarged from the drum 24. However, upon slidable displacement of the closure plate 38 to a preselected location, the openings 36 and 40 do align thereby permitting the discharge of material from the drum 24 onto the conveyor.

While various types of closure plate 38 opening and closing means may be employed, as illustrated by FIGS. 3 and 4, the closure plate is normally maintained in abutting relation with the end plate 32 of drum 24 by means of a spring 42. As illustrated, the spring 42 surrounds a rod 44 which is attached to a first bracket or stop member 46 secured to the closure plate 38. The rod 44 extends through an opening in a bracket or stop member 48 secured to the side portion 34 of drum 24. A closure member 38 is permitted to slide relative to the side portion 34 by means of guide rails 50 fixed to the side portion. With the plate 38 in abutting relation with the drum end plate 32, the plate openings 40 are not aligned with the drum side portion openings 36, as

shown by FIG. 3. The closure plate 38 may be slidably displaced relative to the side portion 34 by means of a cam 52 which is slidably secured to the support 18 and a cam follower 54 fixed to the closure plate 38. The cam follower 54 extends through an opening, not shown, in the drum end plate 32. Since a single cam 52 is fixed to the support 18 to the bottom portion of the drum 24, the closure plate 38 is opened and closed once for each revolution of the drum 24 to permit material of a size small enough to fall through openings 36, 40 to be deposited upon the conveyor belt 30.

The cam 52 may be vertically slidably mounted upon support 18 by means of a mounting plate 59 and fasteners 61. Additional cam followers 56 and 60 may be provided upon the side portions 37 and 35, respectively, for cooperating with the cam 52 in the event the closure plates 38 on side portions 35 or 37 are to be actuated. It is to be understood that the cam followers 54, 56, 60 of different sizes, as shown by FIG. 6, such that only one cam follower will cooperate with cam 52 depending upon the selected position of the cam 52. For example, as shown by FIG. 6, the cam 52 has been slidably adjusted upon the support 18 to cooperate only with the cam follower 60 upon each rotation of drum 24. Therefore, material would be discharged through the openings in side portions and closure plate 38. If

cam follower 56 is to be actuated, cam plate 59 and cam 52 are repositioned downwardly, as shown by FIG. 6, while if cam follower 54 is to be actuated, the cam and cam plate 59 are moved upwardly. The cam plate 59 and cam 52 may be adjusted relative to the support 18 by means of the fasteners 61.

While three side portions have been shown on the drawing as having openings 36 therein of different sizes, it is to be understood that openings may be provided in more or less side portions and two or more side portions may have the same size opening therein.

In order to draw dust, dirt and other small particles from the drum 24 during the grinding operation, conduit members 62 and 64 are provided which lead to a suitable source of exhaust 66. The exhaust conduit 64 extends into the open end of the drum 24. Conduit 62 serves to exhaust particles and materials from around the outer periphery of the drum and around the openings in closure plates 38. The end of the conduit 62 extends through an opening in an arcuate fender member 68 which extends around a substantial portion of the periphery of the drum 24. Note that the fender member 68 extends over the drum end plate 32 and is mounted by the support 18.

A heating unit 70, supported by any suitable means, is positioned inside the drum, as shown by FIG. 1. The heating unit serves to remove any moisture from the material to be ground within the drum.

To facilitate grinding of the material within the drum, upon rotation of the drum, a weighted member 72 may be provided. The member 72 is supported from the shaft 22 by a chain 76 or other suitable means.

In the operation of the apparatus, glass or other materials to be ground is placed within the drum 24. After determining the size to which the glass is to be ground, that is one-quarter inch, one-half inch, etc., an operator adjusts the cam 52 to cooperate with the selected cam follower 54, 56 or 60 and the appropriate closure plate 38, having openings 40 therein, corresponding to the one-quarter inch, one-half inch, etc,. size selected. Upon rotation of the drum 24, the selected cam follower will be actuated by the cam 52 once for each revolution of the drum. Actuation of the cam follower displaces the follower plate 38 to align openings 36 and 40 and permit material up to the preselected size, that is one-quarter inch, one-half inch, etc., to be deposited upon the conveyor 30. For example, if the closure plate 38 having one-quarter inch openings therein is actuated by the cam 52 on each revolution of the drum, the closure plate 38 being actuated as it passes over the conveyor, material of /4 inch size and smaller will fall through the openings and onto the conveyor.

FIG. 7 refers to a modified embodiment of the apparatus wherein the drum 24, similar to the drum of FIGS. 1-6, has a plurality of rotary saw blades 76 therein to facilitate grinding of the material. The blades 76, which may be of carbon steel, are securely mounted upon a shaft 78 with spacers 80 therebetween. The shaft 78 is mounted in supports 79 at an angle with respect to the center line of the drum 24 and may be driven within the range of 3,600-I0,000 rpm by a motor 82 through a drive coupling 84. The heating unit may heat the material to a temperature of approximately 200 Fahrenheit to remove moisture.

I claim:

1. A grinding apparatus comprising a frame, a drum rotatably mounted on said frame, means for driving said drum, the periphery of said drum having a series of openings therein, means normally closing said series of openings to prevent discharge of ground material from the drum,-and means for intermittently actuating said closure means upon rotation of the drum to discharge material through said series of openings.

2. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said drum is polygonal and said series of openings is provided in one side of the polygon.

3. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein a plurality of series of openings are provided in the periphery of said drum and a closure means is provided for each series of openings, the size of openings in each series differing from each other.

4. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, and further including means within the drum for facilitating grinding of material within the drum.

5. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 4, wherein said means within the drum for facilitating grinding of the material comprises at least one blade member.

6. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, and further including means for exhausting particles from the drum.

7. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said closure means comprising a spring biased closure plate and said means for intermittently actuating said closure means comprises a cam arrangement.

8. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein said closure plate has a series of openings therein, the series of closure plate openings normally being misaligned with the series of drum openings.

9. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said cam arrangement includes a cam adjustably supported upon said frame and a cam follower secured to said closure plate, said cam actuating said cam follower and said closure plate upon each rotation of the drum to align the series of closure plate openings with the series of drum openings to permit ground material to be discharged from the drum through the openings.

10. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 9, and further including conveyor means positioned below 5 said drum for receiving ground material discharged through the aligned series of openings. 

1. A grinding apparatus comprising a frame, a drum rotatably mounted on said frame, means for driving said drum, the periphery of said drum having a series of openings therein, means normally closing said series of openings to prevent discharge of ground material from the drum, and means for intermittently actuating said closure means upon rotation of the drum to discharge material through said series of openings.
 2. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said drum is polygonal and said series of openings is provided in one side of the polygon.
 3. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein a plurality of series of openings are provided in the periphery of said drum and a closure means is provided for each series of openings, the size of openings in each series differing from each other.
 4. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, and further including means within the drum for facilitating grinding of material within the drum.
 5. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 4, wherein said means within the drum for facilitating grinding of the material comprises at least one blade member.
 6. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, and further including means for exhausting particles from the drum.
 7. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said closure means comprising a spring biased closure plate and said means for intermittently actuating said closure means comprises a cam arrangement.
 8. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein said closure plate has a series of openings therein, the series of closure plate openings normally being misaligned with the series of drum openings.
 9. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said cam arrangement includes a cam adjustably supported upon said frame and a cam follower secured to said closure plate, said cam actuating said cam follower and said closure plate upon each rotation of the drum to align the series of closure plate openings with the series of drum openings to permit ground material to be discharged from the drum through the openings.
 10. A grinding apparatus as recited in claim 9, and further including conveyor means positioned below said drum for receiving ground material discharged through the aligned series of openings. 